Engagement
by ShioriAyano
Summary: Shikamaru and Temari have known they were betrothed since birth, but not to whom. They will discover love and secrets along their journey to create a perfect family. Rated T for language and suggestive material.
1. Chapter 1

**Author: Emi of Shioriayano **

**AN: This is my 2nd fanfiction of the ones I've actually kept here. My first one was a flop. I am going to try and see this one through to the end so... :) Enjoy!  
**

**Summary: Shikamaru is engaged to a girl from Suna he doesn't know.**

**Disclaimer I do not own Naruto, if I did, it sure as heck wouldn't be named after something found in ramen...**

**--**

_Why does everything in life have to be so complicated and hard? Couldn't we just wake up and be happy all day long with peace and no fighting? Sigh... I guess not. Too many people who have lived through years of war and fighting have grown accustomed to the constant fear and destruction that happens daily. Peace..it will never happen. Will it? Too bad I have to even go out today...troublesome. _

Thinking was what Nara Shikamaru did to start his day...every day. The day in question was particularly difficult for this young Konoha ninja. Today was the day he was to meet his betrothed. He'd known about her for years. He had been betrothed when he was still an infant to a wealthy ninja clan's daughter who was, in fact, three years older than he.

The two clans both needed money and security at the time. The Nara clan needed the money and had gotten it in the form of the first "installment" of the young girl's dowery. The girl's clan needed security. They desperately had to have a connection between the two villages where each clan resided. All contact with both clans had agreeably broken off until last September 22, the day Shikamaru had turned 15. 16 was the legal age of marriage in both villages, however, both clans wanted time for the betrothed to "warm up" to each other. Neither of the betrothed objected to meeting their future spouses before the time they absolutely had to.

For Shikamaru, the whole ordeal was actually less troublesome than it should be. For one, he didn't have to chase women the rest of his life searching for one to call his own, he had one already. To his knowledge, he had never met the girl. All he knew was that she was a girl from Sunagakure who was 18 years old. It was currently March, the wedding to take place at the end of September, and today was the day he would finally meet her.

_Well, no use avoiding it. Time to get up.._. Shikamaru thought as he hoisted himself out of bed.

**--**

Meanwhile, somewhere on the road from Suna to Konoha, was a young girl at the age 18 with blonde hair put up in 4 bushy ponytails. And her name was Subaku-no Temari. She was on her way to meet the guy she was engaged to, some 15 year old guy from the Nara clan. She only knew one Nara, and that was Nara Shikamaru, whom she had fought in the Chunin exams and found out that he was the only one promoted. She had kept a steady friendship for the 3 years she had known him, and had even had a crush on him for a while, but vowed never to let her love get too far, for she knew that she would be engaged. The way she thought, if it was a Nara and related to Shikamaru, she got off pretty good. She would be gracious for the man to whom she had been betrothed. Little did she know, her betrothed was really her beloved...

**--**

"SHIKAMARU! What have I told you about presentability when we are hosting esteemed guests in our home?! GO CHANGE NOW!" yelled a scarier than usual Nara Yoshino. Shikamaru loved his family, but sometimes they could just be damned scary! He trudged back up the stairs from whence he came, went into his small room and proceeded to take off everything he wore except for his undergarments. He started to look for what his mom wanted him to wear...until he saw the monstrosity lying on the bed.

"MOM! I AM NOT WEARING THIS!" He found himself staring at a frilly light blue matching shorts-and-coat ensemble with a ruffled shirt that came straight out of a 70's prom. Then, the scariest thing in the world burst into his room, just to make things worse.

"Shikamaru," said a bristling Yoshino in a calm voice, "you have nothing else to wear but this. If you do, show it to me."

Shikamaru sighed. _Thank GOD dad forced me to buy a tux..._Shikamaru thought as he made a mental note sacrifice himself to his father for saving him the embarrassment of dressing like this in front of his betrothed. He then showed his still steaming mother his black tux and the matching shoes.

"WHEN DID YOU GET A TUX? I wanted to beeee sniff Theereee when myy poooor baaybeee sniff got his first Tuu-hu-hux!" sobbed a randomly emotional Yoshino. She then smacked him over the head, once again angry, as usual. "You should have told me! I could gotten you a better one for a lot cheaper!"

"Moom! Dad forced me! It's not my fault! But I'm still glad he did! Go away so I can get dressed...again." Shikamaru pleaded with his mother. He finally got her shoved out the door as she was about to hit him over the head again.

Ahh, peace and quiet. Dressing, again, Shikamaru brushed his long hair and put it back into his standard ponytail. He thought about Suna...hot, dry, desert. Shikamaru thought about the people he knew from Suna. Only one came immediately to mind, Temari. He loved Temari, but wouldn't let it interfere with his engagement. To him, Temari was as beautiful as the clouds he watched on a warm summer day, maybe even more beautiful... He wondered what the girl he was going to meet looked like...

**--**

"Finally! The gates to Konoha!" Kankuro, one of Temari's younger brothers shouted.

"You're giving me a headache...again." Calmly stated Gaara, the other of Temari's younger brothers and also the Kazekage, and the head of the Subaku-no clan. A very scary combination of power, no?

"Calm down, both of you. We are just going to check into our hotel, go to this guy's house and then going out to lunch with him. I have his address right here. PLEASE try to be nice, kind, gentle, and POLITE coughkankurocough ! I want this to go smoothly." Temari all but screamed at her brothers.

"Then let's continue," said the ever-polite Gaara as they passed through the gates showing their visas. No one stopped them, for everyone knew who they were and why they were here. A great alliance was about to be made between Konoha and Suna, but nobody knew how it came to be. They knew that Temari, sister to the great Kazekage and one of the last members of the great, powerful, and very rich Subaku-no clan from Suna, and Nara Shikamaru, heir to the great Nara clan and lazy Chunin extraordinaire were to be married for the good of the village. It was strange, but they were glad for it.

As soon as Temari got to her hotel, she grabbed her room key, went to her room, and collapsed on the bed..and fell asleep.

**--**

"When is this girl I'm going to meet gonna get here?" Shikamaru droned. He hated waiting for stupid things like this. He'd rather be sleeping. He wished the girl were as lazy as he was and was wanting to sleep right now as much as he did.

--

Temari woke up 30 minutes later, and she now had only 30 minutes to get ready. She hopped up, turned on the shower, got in, washed up, and got out. She then proceeded to blow dry her hair and put it up in four pom-pom pigtails. She then got dressed in a very nice kimono that was blue with purple and white flowers adorning it in a very attractive pattern. She was ready. She met her brothers in the lobby and they all got into a taxi cart and went off to meet her betrothed.

--

Shikamaru watched as the taxi stopped in front of their house. He pulled back from the window to stand by the door for when she got there. He was actually starting to get nervous...

**--**

Temari was nervous as she approached the door. She walked up the side walk and then stood on the stoop. With a shaking finger, she opened the door. Who was standing by the door, but none other than...

"SHIKAMARU?!"

"TEMARI?!"

**--**

**A/N Hope you enjoyed it! Second chapter shall be posted shortly :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Sorry for not posting a new chapter sooner. I'm not gonna put a lame excuse up here for not doing it, because there's not any. I'm lazy. :) I sincerely apologize, and i hope very much that you enjoy this next chapter as much as i enjoyed writing it, or something cheesy like that.**

**Thank you especially to IbikiTeishi for reviewing last chapter, I made a few changes that I hope are to your liking. Thank you also to soar2survive, joey787, and Rohain Tahquil, and the others who reviwed; I love reviews and you guys are the only reason I'm still writing this stinking story! . **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did...:)**

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"Oh my god..." the two teens said in unison.

Shikamaru couldn't believe it was really Temari. He still loved her, and now his dream was coming true.

Temari had other thoughts.

"Hello Shikamaru, it is good to see you again. Would you please kindly lead me to the man I am engaged to?" said a once again calm Temari.

Shikamaru just stared at her. He was really quite appalled that she would say something like that to him. Of course he was the one marrying her! Who else in this house was betrothed to a girl from Sunagakure?

"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. You must have gotten the wrong address." Stated Shikamaru, in the same manner as Temari, right before slamming the door in the Suna trio's face.

**--**

It was obvious she'd said something that had offended him. He barely acknowledged that he had known who she was, besides when he had screamed out her name after he had first opened the door. God, it had been good to see him again. She still loved him, but she was used to things not being what she wanted. For her to be betrothed to Shikamaru, it was too good for her to believe. She desperately wanted to be engaged to Shikamaru, but it was just not possible. She would try to ask him again who she was betrothed to. sigh _Here we go again..._

**--**

The dreaded door bell rang again. Shikamaru wanted to rip the bell box off the wall, disembowel it, and chuck the remains at Temari's head. He opened the door and said in a bored and slightly agitated tone, "What?" He didn't care if she was the Great Hokage of the Hidden Leaf village, he would not be polite to her after what she had just done.

"I wish to know to whom I am betrothed, if that is not too much to ask." said Temari in an almost too-cool tone. Shikamaru was about to pop a vein.

"I don't know. Why don't you go ask the Hokage? She'll probably know if anyone. In fact, I need to go see her about meeting the girl I'm betrothed to today. A few minutes ago, actually, was when she was supposed to be here. She hasn't shown up yet, so I assume she's not coming. If you will excuse me, I need to see my parents about changing the date of my...well...date." he then abruptly closed the door, again in her face.

**--**

_How could I be so STUPID?!_ Temari thought, mentally banging her head in a repetition of very painful blows. She cursed herself for being such an idiot. Shikamaru _was_ her betrothed! Why was she so negative about everything that she couldn't see the one good thing in her life standing right in front of her the whole time. She still thought it highly unprovable that the one man she ever truly loved was going to be her betrothed, and had been since birth. Temari had never been one to believe in luck, but she was ready to start now. _One more time... as they say, 'Third time's a charm...' _she thought, drearily, as she rang the door bell for the last time.

**--**

The one thing running through Shikamaru's mind this whole time was _She doesn't love me..._ A tragic thought, and one completely untrue. However, the last fact was totally unknown to him. He was heartbroken, and starting to fume. The one time Yoshino's genes decided to kick in, he was about to yell at the one woman who actually loved him, and yelling at her would result in a series of painful whacks to his thick skull with an oversized fan. He'd already experienced the bad side of that fan...he wasn't exactly thrilled with the thought of facing it again. But none the less, when the doorbell rang again, he threw open the door, making the poor thing creak on it's hinges, and yelled, with spittle flying in every direction and mostly on Temari's face, "**WHAT?!**"

**--**

Temari did NOT like being yelled at, especially when the liquid contents of someone else's mouth were raining down on her. If she had been in her right mind, which she was not, or if she had her fan, which she did not, Shikamaru probably would have been unconscious with a large lump protruding from the top of his head, which he was not and did not. Instead of what Temari would have liked to have happened, she let Shikamaru fume and said, in an icy, eerily calm voice that sounded almost like Temari was checking herself,"Shikamaru...you're my betrothed...aren't you."

**--**

A wave of calm and understanding washed over Shikamaru as he realized Temari was seriously just putting these facts together. He almost felt bad about yelling at her and acting as a spoiled brat, but as it so happened, he just skipped over that tiny fact and decided to answer his betrothed. "Yes. I am. I have always known I would marry a girl from the Subaku No clan, but I assumed it would be some random girl I'd never met in my life. Besides, I didn't even remember your last name. Everyone just calls you Temari. And how many girls are there in your clan, anyway?"

Temari had calmed down considerably since thinking her once murderous thoughts. "You can't remember because you never have to use it. In Suna, Subaku No's are treated like royalty, almost like the Hyuugas but better. And as it happens, I am the last girl in the Subaku No line. Me, Kanky, and Gaara are the last three people in my clan. How's that for bloodlines?" said Temari in an almost mocking tone, kept light only for Shikamaru's sake.

Shikamaru gawked, but quickly reclaimed himself. "Oh," was all that managed to escape his mouth before...

**--**

**A/N: I like cliff hangers :P and EWW! That was short. Next time will be longer. If it isn't, please track me down and burn me at the stake, I probably deserve it. I might not post another chapter for about 2 weeks. Can you contain your excitement? Review please! Constructive criticism is very welcome! **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Wow, it's been a long time since I've posted. This is the second copy of my chapter, the first one got wiped along with every other file on my laptop when the hard drive conveniently crashed. Having warranty is a lovely thing, especially with MacBooks, because they are friggin expensive to repair. I hope you people enjoy this chapter with all it's twisted glory.  
**

**One of you commented that there is no such thing as the Subaku No clan, and that the name means Of The Sand. I am perfectly aware of that fact, this is MY fanfiction after all, isn't it? Also did you know that Hinata Hyuuga is a repetitive name? It means Sunshine Sun. Literally. The Subaku No is a clan in my story, and hope you learn to accept that fact. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, If I did, Lee would pop out of my best friend's birthday card dressed in an Elvis costume singing Barbie Girl. Unfortunately, most of the world is realistic.**

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**Recap:**

A wave of calm and understanding washed over Shikamaru as he realized Temari was seriously just putting these facts together. He almost felt bad about yelling at her and acting as a spoiled brat, but as it so happened, he just skipped over that tiny fact and decided to answer his betrothed. "Yes. I am. I have always known I would marry a girl from the Subaku No clan, but I assumed it would be some random girl I'd never met in my life. Besides, I didn't even remember your last name. Everyone just calls you Temari. And how many girls are there in your clan, anyway?"

Temari had calmed down considerably since thinking her once murderous thoughts. "You can't remember because you never have to use it. In Suna, Subaku No's are treated like royalty, almost like the Hyuugas but better. And as it happens, I am the last girl in the Subaku No line. Me, Kanky, and Gaara are the last three people in my clan. How's that for bloodlines?" said Temari in an almost mocking tone, kept light only for Shikamaru's sake.

Shikamaru gawked, but quickly reclaimed himself. "Oh," was all that managed to escape his mouth before...

**--**

Temari grabbed Shikamaru and hugged him. She held on tight, like he was the only thing keeping her on the earth. She loved how warm he felt, and how he smelled like cinnamon and pine trees. She buried her head in his neck and just inhaled for a few minutes as she gathered her thoughts for the first time after discovering life changing news. She was to be Mrs. Nara Shikamaru .

She smiled as she felt Shikamaru slowly put his arms around Temari, as if he wasn't sure she was going to hit him or not. She hugged him even tighter and lifted her head and looked in his eyes and admitted what she had been thinking for the past three years, "Nara Shikamaru, you are the biggest baka I have ever met. And I love you more than anyone else in the world." She leaned forward and....

**--**

Shikamaru was still in shock from the most beautiful girl in the world telling him she loved him. He didn't even comprehend the lips moving toward him till they touched his own. And electric shock ran through his body as the soft pink flesh of Temari's mouth connected in wonderful ecstasy as he floated in the moment. He decided it would be best if he kissed her back. He leaned into her and they shared a heartfelt moment as they silently agreed that they were not mad at each other, and they loved each other instead.

**--**

Unfortunately, this beautiful moment was destroyed by Yoshino tearing the two lovebirds apart. "NOT UNTIL WE HAVE MET THE YOUNG LADY! I WILL NOT HAVE A PREGNANT, UNMARRIED, FUTURE DAUGHTER IN LAW!" Screamed a terrifyingly mad Yoshino.

"Mom, I-I'd like t-to int-t-troduce you to T-Temari." he managed to sputter out. Quite frankly, his mother scared the crap out of him.

"Holy Hell...what in the name of Kami is going on here? I haven't seen Yoshino this mad since I took a picture of her in her pink lacy thong and gave it to Inoichi." Which, of course, Shukaku said, now writhing on the floor groaning in pain while clutching his head.

"Obviously my husband has no manners. Please forgive him." Yoshino said while placing her hands together in front of her face while bowing deeply to her guests.

"It is quite all right Mrs. Nara, we were just getting reacquainted after the long time apart. Maybe Shika never told you how sweet he was on me. By the way, I am Subaku No Temari and these are my brothers, Gaara, the Kazekage, and Kankuro, the puppet master." By now, Temari knew her brothers well enough to know that, when she introduced them, using their formal titles would make them the least mad at her.

"What an honor it is to have you here at my humble home. I hope you found your hotel to your liking?"

"Yes, Thank you Mrs. Nara." Temari said with a slight bow as Yoshino ushered the group into the small living room. On a low table with six pillows set around it was a steaming hot meal for the soon to be family to enjoy. Temari quickly looked at the food and was impressed with Yoshino's cooking skills. She would have to get Yoshino to teach her to make some of these dishes. They all sat down on the blue satin embroidered pillows to eat. In the back of her mind, Temari noticed that there were deer embroidered onto the pillows...she would need to talk to Shikamaru about redecorating.

"Beef and spring vegetable stir-fry, my favorite!" Kankuro exclaimed as her immediately dug in without even waiting for their hostess to begin. This ended quickly when Temari delivered a quick blow to the back of his head.

"Baka! I am so sorry Mr. and Mrs. Nara. My brother obviously has no manners." Said Temari throught gritted teeth. As Yoshino accepted her apology, the began their first meal together, and it was most certainly not their last...

**--**

**A/N: My apologies for this chapter being so short. Have you ever hear of Rube Goldburg? Imagine having to build one. And having a budget. And getting a hefty grade on it. My situation exactly, and I have about a week to finish the report. Sucks to be me. Ah well, once I stop being lazy a fourth chapter will be up. **


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